Many people enjoy riding motorcycles on the road as well as off road. When driving a motorcycle off road, the motorcycle typically encounters rough terrain and obstacles. Many times the driver will have difficulty maintaining the control of the motorcycle when encountering the rough terrain and obstacles because the front wheel suspension cannot adequately adjust to compensate for the unevenness of the terrain or the height of the obstacle.
One way to maintain control of a motorcycle while riding off road is to provide a drive force to the front wheel. When a drive force is imparted on the front wheel, the front wheel actively engages the obstacle or uneven terrain. The active engagement of the front wheel with the obstacle or uneven terrain allows the driver maintain better control of the motorcycle when compared to a single wheel drive motorcycle encountering the same obstacle. However, as a front wheel of an all wheel drive motorcycle is turned or cornered, a torque steer is typically created if the drive system is not designed to eliminate torque steer which makes turning an all wheel drive motorcycle very difficult.
An all wheel drive motorcycle can also encounter bump steer when the front wheel engages an obstacle. Bump steer is the unwanted turning of the front wheel and fork caused by the front wheel drive train when the front wheel engages the obstacle.
Also, a typical suspension for a front wheel of a motorcycle includes shock absorbers such as compression spring(s) located within the front fork. As the front wheel engages an obstacle or uneven terrain, the compression springs compresses to absorb some of the shock caused by the engagement of the wheel with the obstacle or uneven terrain. As the compression spring compresses and expands, the distance between the axle supporting the wheel and the top of the fork varies. The front wheel drive train must compensate for the change in distance between the top of the fork and the axle.
When utilizing a shaft drive as the front wheel drive train, a telescoping multi-part shaft is typically utilized to compensate for the change in distance between the axle and the top fork. However, a telescoping multi-part shaft causes unnecessary complexities and potential mechanical failures while needing a separate system to compensate for the torque steer when turning the all wheel drive motorcycle.
A chain drive can also be utilized to provide power to the front wheel. Typically a tensioning sprocket is utilized to compensate for the change in distance between the top of the fork and the axle. A position of the tensioning sprocket typically adjusts to compensate for slack in the chain caused by the change in distance between the top of the fork and the axle such that the chain is at a substantially constant tension while the front wheel engages the obstacles or rough terrain. However, the chain drive on the front wheel having a tensioning sprocket is complex and subject to mechanical failure while not alleviating the issue regarding torque steer.